Solar3D partners with College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering to manufacture prototype cell

The company's innovative solar cell technology utilises a 3D design to trap sunlight inside micro-photovoltaic structures where photons bounce around until they are converted into electrons.

US-based three-dimensional solar cell start-up Solar3D is in discussions with the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering to facilitate the fabrication of its new cell technology.

The Smart System Technology and Commercialization Center at the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering has been formed specifically to help commercialise breakthrough innovations such as the Solar3D cell.

Inspired by light management techniques used in fibre optic devices, the company's innovative solar cell technology utilises a three-dimensional design to trap sunlight inside micro-photovoltaic structures where photons bounce around until they are converted into electrons.

"We have produced the initial prototype of our innovative new solar cell. It has exceeded our initial expectations. Now, we are focused on doing what is necessary to make it available to the world," said Jim Nelson, CEO of Solar3D.

"The results of the initial testing on the original prototype have been very encouraging," said Nelson. "But there is still room for making the product even better. The version 2.0 of the Solar3D cell is currently being refined."

Nelson concluded: "We know that this next generation technology works. We continue to refine it – making it more efficient and easier to build. It will only get better from here. By the time we do our pilot run, we believe that we will have something very special indeed."

Looking back, 2014 was a year of convalescence for a PV industry still battered and bruised from a period of ferocious competition. End-market demand continued apace, with analysts towards the end of 2014 predicting the year would see between around 45 and 50GW of deployment. That has begun to feed through to the supplier end of the market, with all the main manufacturers announcing capacity expansions in 2015 and further ahead.

Although the past few years have proved extremely testing for PV equipment manufacturers, falling module prices have driven solar end-market demand to previously unseen levels. That demand is now starting to be felt by manufacturers, to the extent that leading companies are starting to talk about serious capacity expansions later this year and into 2015. This means that the next 12 months will be a critical period if companies throughout the supply chain are to take full advantage of the PV industry’s next growth phase.